During the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, our army was faced with two sad circumstances: the almost complete absence of heavy machine guns and anti-aircraft mounts. No, they were in the protection of airfields, but often there was simply nothing to guard military columns on the march. As a result - the long, almost three-year dominance of fascist aviation in the air and huge losses in technology and manpower.
That is why in the postwar years the best scientific and technical personnel of the USSR were thrown to the development of
anti-aircraft artillery . The result of their work, in particular, was the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft installation, which appeared as a result of the modernization of a simple ZU-23. It has been in service for more than 50 years, and its further development, which resulted in the appearance of the twin (cannon-missile) ZU-30, leaves no doubt about the exceptional success of the idea itself.
How did she appear?
So, after World War II, the entire anti-aircraft weapon system underwent a complete revision and reorganization. It was immediately decided that 25 mm guns, due to their excess weight, are suitable exclusively for the fleet. The effectiveness of the then-popular 37-mm caliber was clearly not enough to perform specific "land" tasks.
But at the same time, the troops urgently demanded a small-caliber automatic gun, following the example of those that were installed on attack aircraft during the war. Actually, the cannon from the legendary IL-2 was taken as the basis. Note that the many thousands of ZU-23-2 and 20-mm anti-aircraft guns that currently exist are no less known than the guns of their distant “ancestor”.
Already in 1955, the draft of the 23A 2A14 anti-aircraft machine was presented. Engineers proposed two configurations: single and twin. The latter immediately had a higher priority, and therefore was made immediately in three versions. All varieties had only a manual version of the drive, equipped with a standard ZAP-23 anti-aircraft sight.
The Commission decided that the ZU-14 model most fully meets all the requirements of the military. It was she who in 1959 was "driven out" at all stages of combined arms tests in several military districts. It was adopted in 1960, giving the name ZU-23. Production was carried out by plant No. 535. It should be noted that the further elimination of all the identified shortcomings and “childhood diseases” took 10 years, after which the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft installation was born.
Design Features
Automation works due to the energy of the removed powder gases. The wedge-type bolt, locking the barrel by means of the emphasis of its "outgrowths" in the cutouts of the receiver. The successful design of the barrel mounts allows it to be replaced in a combat situation in just 15-20 seconds. Also very successful were the drives of horizontal and vertical aiming, equipped with spring shock-absorbing devices.
The operator spends very little time to accurately aim at the target. If you look at the description of ZU-23-2, which is given by the official manufacturer of these units, then you can find information that a trained calculation can make a target aim in just 5-15 seconds. And this is subject to the use of mechanical correction tools! In the case when the soldier has at his disposal a modernized ZU-30M with optoelectronic systems, the capture and tracking of the object is carried out almost instantly.
On the opposite side, trunks can be moved in just three seconds! Ammunition - tape type. The tape is used metal, the standard size is 50 rounds, which are stacked in a metal box, which allows reloading the gun as soon as possible. Each such box with tape and cartridges weighs nearly 35.5 kg. The installation platform is a spherical one equipped with three screw jacks. With their help, the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun is securely mounted in a combat position.
The platform is equipped with a towing protrusion. In the stowed position, the installation rises on two wheels from the GAZ-69. There is a torsion bar suspension used to minimize the likelihood of damage to the gun during its transportation over rough terrain. This is an important circumstance, since in places of intense clashes more or less normal roads remain extremely rare.
Guidance, shooting at different types of targets
Aiming ZU-23-2 is carried out by using the aforementioned ZAP-23 sight. The current range to the target can be entered in the range of up to 3000 meters. This is true with the course direction 00 and the ground speed of the tracked object up to 300 m / s. The sight allows you to very accurately set the required lead, which has a beneficial effect on the likelihood of destruction of the fired aircraft.
When firing at ground targets, the same corrections can be made at distances up to 2000 meters. In some cases (experimental calculation), the range can be determined "manually", but usually they use the help of a stereo range finder. The operator enters all other data by eye. The angles of the target and its azimuth are especially important. Because of this, the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun (we give it in the article) is very "demanding" to have a well-trained crew.
A feature of this anti-aircraft gun was the fact that the design of the full-time sighting system ZAP-23 includes a sight for ground targets T-3. Note that he has an independent line of sight.
The advantages of anti-aircraft installation
Oddly enough, but the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun is famous not for its “air” talents, but for its completely ground-based use. In all local conflicts of recent years, it turned out that this weapon is ideally suited as the main striking means of motorized rifle companies, since they simply do not have anything more suitable. First, the ZSU can be deployed almost instantly into a combat position. Secondly, with its help all types of targets located at a distance of a direct shot (up to a kilometer) can be equally instantly suppressed.
Very often, the need for such an application of ZU-23-2 arises in collisions with irregular military formations of the enemy, that is, during counter-terrorism operations. Alas, over the past 20 years they have turned into a real "fashion trend."
Other "highlights" of the design
The huge advantage of this installation is the fact that it does not require preliminary engineering preparation of the position. Only a more or less even surface is enough. Here it is necessary to take into account the possibilities of screw jacks, due to which you can even turn a 30-degree slope into an ideal plane. This was especially valuable in Afghanistan and Chechnya, where the 23 mm ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun was used in the mountains.
It is believed that a well-coordinated combat crew is able to bring the installation into a combat position in just 15-20 seconds. From combat to marching - in 35-40 seconds. In practice, it was proved that, if necessary, the ZU-23-2 can shoot on the move, while in the stowed position. Of course, accuracy and accuracy can hardly be called satisfactory, but it will do for emergency combat.
Separately, you need to talk about the excellent mobility of the installation. Any army car can take it in tow, since even in fully equipped form the mass of the storage is much less than one ton. On paved roads, the speed of transportation can reach up to 70 km / h, and on impassability - up to 20 km / h. So the ZU-23-2, the technical description of which we provide, is an extremely “all-terrain” anti-aircraft gun.
A very significant advantage is also the highest maintainability. Only the simplest and most common steel grades were used in the construction, so repairs can be arranged at any enterprise that has at least the most primitive machines and other equipment.
Ammunition, cartridge characteristics
The standard ammunition ZU-23-2 includes 23 mm cartridges. Shells are used of two types - BZT and OFZT (OFZ). The first is armor-piercing incendiary tracer. It is produced with an integral warhead, the mass of which is 190 g. The bottom part contains a charge for tracing, and the warhead is an incendiary train. OFZ, that is, high-explosive fragmentation charges, have a warhead weighing 188.5 g. Until the 90s, the ZU-23-2 (the technical description of the installation is given in the article) most often used this particular type of ammunition.
The fuse in both cases is used brand V19UK (in the early versions - MG-25). Its feature is the availability of self-liquidator, its response time is 11 seconds. Regardless of the brand of the projectile, 77 grams of gunpowder grade 5/7 CFL is used as a propellant charge. Note that specifically for the creation of these ammunition, several domestic research institutes were engaged in the creation of new types of gunpowder that would have maximum energy intensity and combustion rate.
Ballistic ammunition features
The total mass of the cartridge (regardless of brand) is 450 g. The main ballistic indicators are also the same. The initial speed is 980 m / s, the maximum height ("ceiling") is 1,500 m, the maximum guaranteed range of destruction is up to 2,000 m. Note: OFZ-type shells are currently used extremely rarely, since their combat power does not meet modern requirements.
In any case, the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun (we already examined its characteristics) received many complaints during both Chechen campaigns: it turned out that OFZ shells are very poorly suited for working in urban conditions, as they have poor penetrating ability.
As a rule, the tape is equipped according to an unwritten rule: four OFZT shells per one BZT. And further. The MG-25 fuse, which had a lot of flaws, is now completely replaced by the V-19UK. The reasons for this are simple. Firstly, its sensitivity to dense surfaces is completely similar to that for the previous model, but the fuse does not detonate when the projectile comes in contact with rain drops. Secondly, it has much better moisture resistance.
Combat use
For the first time, the triumphant use of the ZU-23-2 occurred during the Afghan campaign. Due to their low weight, compactness, ease of transportation and slaughter, they were ideal for covering small groups of outgoing mujahideen. Of course, the main role in this was played by Shilka ...
Here are just self-propelled guns for all decidedly lacking. First, the soldiers "semi-underground" installed "Zushki" in the bodies of trucks following in the composition of military convoys, and only then the ZU-23-2 in this role received official approval of the military command of all levels. Especially often they began to be mounted on Ural-375 and KAMAZ trucks. Then it was found that five ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft guns can reliably protect a military convoy even from a large ambush, literally "crushing" the latter in the shortest possible time.
The fact is that the BMP-1, with a gun that had a tiny angle of elevation, has become an effective means of protecting military columns from the ambush of Mujahideen in the mountains. Not without the participation of these weapons and the war unfolding in many regions of the USSR immediately after the collapse of the country. And today ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft installations, the photos of which are in the article, are full in all the "hot spots" of the world. Of recent events, it is worth mentioning the sluggish Ukrainian conflict, in which both sides are intensively using "snows".
Moreover, in this case, the ZU-23-2 paired anti-aircraft gun was used exclusively for work on ground targets. The parties to the confrontation no longer had a special need to hit aircraft in the midst of hostilities (they simply did not remain), but during the assault on fortified points, these weapons proved to be the best.
Modern modifications
Alas, with all its merits, even the declared effectiveness of work on air targets is small, amounting to only 0.023. The probability of getting into a modern aircraft (with the exception of perhaps helicopters) is even lower, and significantly.
However, the barrage from this installation did not lose its relevance, since only a couple of hits will disable almost any aircraft. The logical way out is the installation of automatic sights and target tracking systems. That’s what the specialists of Design Bureau of Tochmash named after A. E. Nudelman. Their work formed the basis for the emergence of new anti-aircraft installations ZU-23-2. The photos of these models are easy to distinguish, since they contain launch containers of anti-aircraft missiles.
Benefits of Upgraded Models
In addition, the modernized “zushki” has electromechanical motors for guidance systems, the latest sights with illumination of the working area, and a laser range finder, which makes it possible to determine the distance to within a meter even in conditions of poor visibility. For nighttime operation, the system can additionally be equipped with thermal imaging sights that accurately pinpoint the thermal radiation of enemy equipment for several kilometers. Theoretically, this allows you to knock out even a modern combat helicopter.
The obsolete ZAP-23 sight with the gunner’s workplace was completely eliminated from the design of the upgraded anti-aircraft gun. Its place was taken by an optoelectronic module with additional guidance and control systems. The Podolsky developer claims that as a result of all these innovations, the probability of hitting a target has increased three times at once. But the real “hit” was the ZU-30M model, the design of which provides for the installation of Igla, Stinger or other MANPAD containers, at the request of the end customer.
So the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun, the characteristics of which were considered by us in the article, gave rise to the development of a whole complex of simple, effective and cheap anti -aircraft guns. Being modernized, "zushka" can be used for its intended purpose for several years. We also note that Poland, in the "bins" of which there are many such anti-aircraft guns left, is arbitrarily engaged in the production of modernized samples based on them. Domestic designers are very upset by the fact that the Poles do not comply with copyright.
We hope that the ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft gun described by us and its performance characteristics turned out to be interesting to you. This weapon is a great example of how the originally laid potential of modernization allows the use of anti-aircraft guns from the Cold War to this day.